The journey for the INTERSCHUTZ team from Pacific Helmets takes more than 30 hours. The distance as the crow flies between the northern main island in the Southwestern Pacific and Hanover is 18,235 kilometers. The employees are happy to make the trip, as the company’s technical designer, Sam Milson, assures us. Pacific Helmets is part of the Lakeland Group.

“Summer in Hanover! A week of warmth in the middle of our winter is a true blessing!” Sam enthuses. “But the real main reason is the rare opportunity to come together in a single city to exchange ideas face-to-face, shake hands, and share a meal: with all those people we consider both our friends and our customers,” adds the New Zealander.

As he puts it, the importance of these relationships cannot be overstated. By this, he means the insights gained, the contacts made, and the friendships renewed. “The conversations with firefighters and rescue workers are also insightful, informative, and enriching—and show us where we can still improve,” emphasizes Sam Milson.

For the New Zealand-based company, INTERSCHUTZ ranks among the most important international events for emergency responders, as Ellen Mikkelholt points out. She is responsible for marketing. “In one place and at one time, they can discover innovative solutions to the wide range of challenges they face every day,” says the marketing expert. “Last but not least, we receive immediate feedback on the equipment that emergency responders are currently using.”

Pacific Helmets has been exhibiting at INTERSCHUTZ since 1994. “We’ve been there for every single event since then,” Sam reports proudly. “At that time, we’d already been manufacturing firefighting helmets for about a decade. Initially, it was our traditional F2 and F3 models that were in use in New Zealand, Australia, and the United Kingdom.”

He fondly recalls the helmets that many people still value today. Over the years, however, the company—like everyone else—has learned that firefighters need support and protection that goes beyond mere protection from flames, falls, and impacts. “So we expanded our portfolio to include helmets for wildland firefighting and emergency medical services to cover a broader range of emergency responders and operational tasks,” says the designer.

When developing each individual helmet, the focus is always squarely on the user’s experience. According to him, more and more useful features are being integrated into the helmets—such as eye protection, greater comfort, better weight distribution, and a lighter weight. Attention is also paid to compatibility with all other operational clothing and equipment. The emergency responders we encounter today also differ from those of 1994.

As the company has expanded globally, so too has the diversity of the people who wear Pacific Helmets. This has had a significant influence on the design philosophy: “We develop helmets that are characterized by an optimal fit, high adaptability, and maximum comfort for a wide range of head shapes and sizes,” says Sam. “At the same time, they must be compatible with a wide variety of hairstyles as well as other personal protective equipment (PPE).”

Pacific Helmets is based in Whanganui, very close to the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island. UNESCO has designated the city a City of Design—an honor intended to recognize more than 800 years of creativity, craftsmanship, and innovation. “We are very fortunate to have our roots here—in this small city of about 49,000 people, situated at the mouth of the Whanganui River,” says Sam. “The river is of great cultural significance; incidentally, it has the same rights and protections as a human being. It flows down to us from the central Alpine region—into an area where we’re in close proximity to several mountains and where the opportunities for hiking, skiing, and mountain biking are simply outstanding.”

The city, the designer continues, is compact. It has one or two main shopping streets and consists almost entirely of detached houses. It is also characterized by an extremely vibrant arts and culture scene. Furthermore, according to Sam, the world-famous Sarjeant Gallery – Te Whare O Rehua – is located here at the highest point of the city.

However: Unlike in Europe, winter is just beginning in New Zealand, and it’s getting cooler. “Summer temperatures range from the upper 20s to the low 30s in degrees Celsius,” Sam explains, “while our winter days usually bring temperatures in the low 10s. I’ve never seen snow on the ground here in the city.”

Exhibition Topic Protective Equipment Purchase Ticket